Google CapEx Spending Rebounds Slightly

Google (GOOG) invested $186 million on its data centers in the third quarter of 2009, ending a string of five consectuive quarters in which the company slashed its capital spending. But Google’s infrastructure costs remained just a fraction of what they were during its 2007 building boom, when it announced four new data centers.

The second quarter capital expenditure (CapEx) total was up slightly from $139 million in the second quarter but tically lower than the company spent during the same period in 2006 ($492 million), 2007 ($453 million) and 2008 ($452 million). Here’s a look at the recent trend:

1Q 2006: $345 million

2Q 2006: $699 million

3Q 2006: $492 million

4Q 2006: $367 million

1Q 2007: $597 million

2Q 2007: $575 million

3Q 2007: $553 million

4Q 2007: $678 million

1Q 2008: $842 million

2Q 2008: $698 million

3Q 2008: $452 million

4Q 2008:$368 million

1Q 2009: $263 million

2Q 2009: $139 million

3Q 2009: $186 million

The capex “breather” has been enabled by the company’s building boom in 2007-08, during which it announced major data center construction projects in Lenoir, North Carolina; Goose Creek, South Carolina; Pryor, Oklahoma and Council Bluffs, Iowa.

After the economic meltdown gripped Wall Street last fall, Google throttled back spending even further, opting to delay construction of its data center in Pryor. Google continues to build in other markets. In March Google confirmed plans to build a major data center at a former paper mill in Finland, having paid $51 million in February to purchase the property.

About the Author

Rich Miller is the founder and editor at large of Data Center Knowledge, and has been reporting on the data center sector since 2000. He has tracked the growing impact of high-density computing on the power and cooling of data centers, and the resulting push for improved energy efficiency in these facilities.

Google (GOOG) spent $263 million on its infrastructure in the first three months of 2008, the lowest quarterly total since it began operating its own data centers, as it continued in cash conservation mode. Read More

Google (GOOG) spent $452 million on its infrastructure in the third quarter of 2008, its lowest investment in capital expenditures since the company began its data center building boom in early 2007. Read More